He broke the kiss but kept her in his arms. “God, you’re incredible.”
“So are you.”
They laughed and relief sang through her veins. They were going to be all right.
The next two hours turned chaotic. Jim and Amber quickly discovered they wouldn’t find a flight out to Tucson until the morning, if then. There was too much destruction at the airport—not catastrophic but a royal mess. Parts of the terminal were littered with glass and planes had been damaged by the F-3 tornado. Las Vegas had never seen a tornado like that one and luckily it hadn’t stayed on the ground long enough to cut a swathe through neighborhoods. A hell of a lot of people found themselves stranded at the airport. Amber and Jim checked into a hotel near the airport and got the last two rooms. Their rooms weren’t side by side, so he walked her to her door.
“Things are a mess but I’m glad I had you with me,” she said.
His grin was actually bashful and she found it endearing.
“Hell, you protected me,” he said.
She snorted softly. “Please. You hauled me out of that hallway before I got peppered with glass. Mr. Hero Man. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome but you kept me from being afraid on the flight. Thank you.”
“Anytime.”
He touched her cheek gently. “I’ll see you at six a.m. tomorrow in the lobby and we’ll try to get a flight out of here, okay?”
“You got it.”
He leaned in and their lips met with a gentle kiss. It wasn’t the hot, devouring kiss they’d shared in the airport but it teased and promised. He drew back and when she entered room she dragged her suitcase in and closed the door. Tonight she knew all she’d dream about was Jim Clay and his maddening kisses.
Chapter Three
God, she’s beautiful.
That’s all Jim could think of as Amber negotiated with the airline desk. He watched her from his seat nearby. He’d seen more beautiful women in his life, with their perfect glossy hair, drop-dead bodies and sculpted cheekbones. Amber had so much more. She was tall, slim, with a sweet body he ached to touch. When they’d kissed in the hallway after the tornado strike he’d wished they were somewhere else. In a damn room with a bed. Somewhere he could sink inside her and learn everything about her body. But he wouldn’t try to seduce her right away. Hell no. This woman meant a lot more than a one-night stand, which he didn’t like to engage in anyway.
With her strawberry blonde hair tied in a ponytail again, with freckles across her small nose and her slightly hippie chic tie-dye top and jeans, she looked innocent. Her beauty shone from within. She had a toughness and honesty he found sexy as hell. He couldn’t wait to be with her, to learn everything about her.
A weird sensation overcame him, akin to panic. What if she didn’t get on the same flight as him? At this point he knew she’d be fine and he needed to rein in this crazy desire to protect her. No, he was the one who needed protection and it was a damn weird feeling. He needed her reassurance to make it through to Arizona. His vulnerability pricked at his ego. Man up. You didn’t make it through Godforsaken war to act like this. Get a grip.
When she returned to him, she smiled widely. She sat on the bench next to him. “Not only are we on the same plane, I have a seat right next to you.”
He couldn’t help but smile back. “Good. That’s a relief.”
They dragged their bags along the crowded corridors of the damaged airport and after a long wait at security made it to their gate. The test came next, and as they were called for the flight Jim’s phobia symptoms started up.
“Damn,” he said as they entered the line.
“What’s wrong?” Amber’s gentle face showed pure concern as she touched his arm.
“Sweaty palms. Heart beating faster. I just need to calm down.”
“Take my hand.” She covered his bigger hand with hers. “Deep breaths.”
He did as he was told but the tightness in his body didn’t ease.
She squeezed his hand. “Now another breath. Keep taking deep breaths and feel that relaxation pouring through you.”
He continued the breaths one after the other until the tightness in his body vanished.
It helped…man did it. His heart slowed, his pulse coming down. “Thanks. You’re doing Reiki on me, aren’t you?”
“You’re doing most of the work by breathing deeply.” She smiled up at him. “But yes, I’m doing Reiki as well.”
God he wanted to kiss her, to lose himself inside her. Soon, he hoped. Soon. As they made it onto the aircraft and found their seats toward the back of the plane, the edge of panic started to vibrate inside him.
They buckled in and she took his hand. “Breathe again.”
Tingles raced up and down his arm and darted into his groin. Holy crap. He took a deep breath just to calm his desire to kiss her—and more.
He tried a smile but it felt lopsided and not exactly genuine. He leaned in close to her and took in her mild, pretty scent. Maybe it was her shampoo but damn she smelled good. Not overpowering but like a delicate bit of heaven.
He concentrated on her touch as the engines powered up. “You trying to distract me?”
She returned his gaze head-on, no hesitation in her warm eyes. “Of course.”
He kept his voice low because he didn’t want anyone to hear what he said. He was almost whispering in her ear. “I know this is too soon to say, Amber, but it’s true. And I feel like you appreciate the truth.”
“Of course I do.”
“I don’t want to scare you.”
“Now I’m concerned.” She did look worried.
“What you’ve done for me already…how you’ve helped me…I can’t thank you enough. I want to see more of you. That’s what I worry about, that you’d run if I said I wanted to be with you.”
Her worried look faded. “I’m glad. I want to be with you, too.”
“Thank God. I thought you might tell me to get lost after this.”
Her eyes twinkled with mischief. “Are you kidding? A hot guy like you?”
He chuckled. “Oh yeah?”
She snorted. “Come on. I’ve seen how women look at you. You have a quality that most women would find fascinating…dangerous.”
That shocked him a little. “Dangerous? Well, I’m not dangerous to you or any other woman.”
She placed her other hand over his arm. The connection pulsing between them filled him up yet made him long for more. “I know. But I felt it in you. You’re strong and sexy and a woman can feel that in her pores.”
He suddenly realized they’d taken off and he hadn’t noticed. “Hell.”
“What?”
“Talking to you cures me.”
“Then let’s keep talking. As long as it takes.”
“You’re not like most other women I know.”
“Oh?”
“You’re the most authentic—real person I’ve ever met.”
“It’s taken me a long time for me to get there.”
“Doesn’t matter. You don’t hold back, you say what you mean. You aren’t afraid of anything.”
She looked down at her feet and he sensed he’d stepped in it. Or at the least, he’d discovered something new about her.
“Oh I was afraid of almost everything for most of my life. Fear ruled me,” she said.
“Because you were trying to please your parents.”
“Yes. I’ve spent a large part of my life living in fear of not pleasing other people, of getting disapproval and people telling me I’m wrong.”
“But you’re not that way now.”
“Most of the time I’m not. Although when we first met I admit I heard my sister’s voice in my head telling me to stop being so nosy.”
“I’m glad you were, Amber.”
“I’m warning you, I’m not perfect.”
“No one is.”
She grinned. “I don’t roll the toothpaste tube up from the bottom. I tend to leave the dishes in the sink a while.”<
br />
“That doesn’t sound like a big deal. That stuff is petty and doesn’t matter to me.”
She tilted her head to the side. “Are you real, Jim Clay?”
“Last I looked I am.” He felt the heat rising between them and concentrated on it. “I could kiss you right now.”
“No one’s looking,” she said, sounding a bit breathless. Her gaze landed on his mouth.
He leaned in and took a gentle taste. Her fingers tangled in his hair and when he would have drawn back, she kept him in place. Arousal struck him hard but he managed to wrestle it under control.
When they drew back he whispered in her ear, “Enough of that, or I’ll embarrass myself.”
Pink flushed her cheeks and her gaze dipped. “Oh.”
“Yeah.” He cleared his throat and moved back a bit. “We should be able to see each other fairly often.”
“Good. I’d love that.”
“Your parents won’t approve of me.”
“Probably not.” She smiled widely. “But I don’t care.”
For the rest of the flight they talked frankly. He was dying to be with her in the most intimate of ways but he also knew it was too soon. They needed to learn more about each other before joining their bodies. During the flight she coached him, keeping the phobia down to a dull roar.
After they landed and the plane taxied to the gate he said, “I’ve got my car here.”
“Mine is too.”
They exchanged phone numbers and he felt hope they’d see each other again. They went through the baggage collection area and stopped before they could escape into the outside world.
He touched her face, wanting another feel of her soft skin. “I’ll be caught up in a big case for at least two weeks. But I’ll call.” Her eyebrows pinched together. He wondered if she didn’t believe him. “That sounds like a line. But I mean it. I’ll call you on Tuesday evening. Seven o’clock.”
Her eyes brightened. “I’d love that.”
He slipped his arms around her. He kissed her, loving the way she didn’t hesitate. He couldn’t have described the kiss as anything but soul-shattering. She tasted him as much as he tasted her.
He drew back with a gasp. “We’d better stop.”
She was breathing a little hard. “You’re right. Talk to you soon.”
After he walked with her to the parking garage and watched her drive away he trekked to his own car, his body still humming from the kiss.
* * * * *
Tuesday
Jim called at exactly seven in the evening, just as he’d promised. One part of him wondered if she’d be there. She’d given him her cell phone and landline numbers but she’d said she’d be home. Other women he’d dated hadn’t lived up to promises they’d made and that had jaded him. Amber, though, seemed far too genuine.
She answered on the second ring. “Hello.”
“Hey, it’s Jim.”
“Hey!” She sounded relieved and happy. “How are you?”
“Good. You?”
“Great. It’s wonderful to hear your voice.”
Her liquid voice reminded him of holding her, kissing her. God, he couldn’t get enough of thinking about how that had felt.
“How is your week going?” she asked.
“It’s crazy so far but it turns out we’re done early with the current security detail.”
“Why?”
“The cops caught the stalker, so she doesn’t need protection any longer.”
“That’s good. Wait…do you act as a bodyguard for clients?”
“I have but Dad likes me working in the office most of the time.”
“Because of?”
“He thinks I do a great job.”
She laughed. “I’m sure you do. But what about the fieldwork, if that’s what you’d call it. Do you like the rush of protecting people?”
“Yes and no. But I think war used up a lot of that need for a rush, if you know what I mean.”
“Of course.”
Conversation turned to ordinary things for a long time and then it turned where he didn’t expect.
“You didn’t tell me about the funeral you attended. You said it was a friend?” she asked.
He drew in a slow breath. “Yeah. Dan Mead. He worked with me in EOD. We had a tour together and were good friends. He left the military about the time I did. He had bad PSTD and…he committed suicide. He shot himself.”
“Oh no.” Her sympathetic voice filled the line. “I’m so sorry to hear that. How awful.”
“Yeah. It was hard…” He swallowed, well aware of the burn in his eyes as he thought of his friend. “He was a good man.”
Silence crept over the line until she said, “Are you okay?”
“I’m always okay talking to you.”
“Good.”
He decided to take another chance. “Are you free Saturday?”
“Yes. Why?”
“I’d like to come up to Redemption Ridge and see you, if that’s okay.”
“I’d love it.” Genuine pleasure filled her voice. “We could hang out, have dinner.”
They agreed he’d arrive Saturday morning and he’d check in to a local hotel. He didn’t want her to think he planned to camp out at her condo. No, that was also too fast.
“I know it hasn’t been long but I miss you, Amber.” There, he’d taken her road and gone for genuine.
“I miss you too, Jim.”
Her voice, so soft and understanding, made him wish he were there now, holding her.
He needed to reassure her. “I’m not trying to rush you into anything.”
She laughed softly. “I know. You’re a cautious guy. I wish you were here already.” Her voice lowered to a feminine purr that set his libido on fire. “I’m looking forward to it.”
Their conversation continued about this and that, about everything and anything.
Finally she said, “What are you most afraid of, Jim?”
The question threw him off. “Flying.”
“Are you sure?”
“Girl, you are something else.”
“I know. You already told me that at least three times.” Her voice was full of teasing.
He laughed, enjoying her directness. “Okay. I’m afraid of losing what you and I have right now. Of it being a dream.”
“I know.” Her soft voice whispered. “Something this good can’t be real, right?”
She sounded a bit dejected and he hated that. “I don’t think you believe that. You’re an optimist.”
“That doesn’t mean I don’t get afraid sometimes. I’m human.”
“Of course.” He realized their positions were reversed. A phobia had made him fearful on the airplane. It was his turn to make her feel better and mean it. “I like that about you. You’re honest but you’re real in ways so many people aren’t. You’re authentic, Amber. Do you realize how rare and special that is?”
Her sigh over the line sounded sweet to his ears.
“Thanks. Back at ya.”
“Even if I wasn’t straight up about things, you’d teach me how.”
“Now you’re making me sound like a—”
“Sexy, smart, wonderful woman?” he asked.
Her laugh almost came out as a giggle and he liked the girlishness too. “Okay, that’s enough. My head will explode.”
“Promise me that if you change, you won’t stop being authentic,” he said.
“That I can promise, Jim.”
* * * * *
Saturday
Redemption Ridge
Amber looked at the clock on her condo wall and settled on the couch. Despite taking her own advice to breathe, she was nervous. She’d had the same problem on Tuesday when she’d been at home waiting for Jim to call. She’d been nervous Jim wouldn’t call and nervous that he would. Or maybe she could attribute her feelings to excitement.
At ten a.m. her doorbell rang and she forced herself to walk slowly when she wanted to run. She checked the peephole. Happine
ss rushed inside her when she saw Jim standing outside. She opened the door.
“Hey,” he said. “Found it. You give great directions.”
She ushered him inside. He closed the door behind him and they hugged. He held her close and tight and she drew his warmth inside. More feelings danced within her—sweet happiness and the knowledge she’d gotten this relationship right. She let down her guard, knowing she’d feel more physically and mentally. To feel the pleasure she would have to allow for the possibility she would feel his emotions too. She felt a wave of happiness surging inside her but didn’t know if it belonged to her or to him. Perhaps it belonged to them both. When she pulled back a little they fell into a deep kiss. She knew right then she wanted him here and now. She traced her palms over his green polo shirt, absorbing his masculine strength and loving it. He groaned as the kiss went deeper, fuller. Their touches became more intimate by the moment. She wanted with everything inside her to see his nakedness and to feel him against her. She couldn’t wait. His caresses filled her with magic as she arched into his touch. His palms cupped her hips and drew her into his hardness. She didn’t want to wait for him any longer.
One Chance With You Page 3